Europe

Open Europe's Vincenzo Scarpetta gives his initial take on the first draft of the EU's guidelines for the upcoming Brexit negotiations.

European Council President Donald Tusk is a man of his word. He promised he would have a first draft of the Brexit negotiating guidelines for the 27 remaining EU member states ready within 48 hours from the moment the UK triggered the Article 50 exit mechanism – and he delivered. Overall, the document reads as anything but punitive. Below are my initial thoughts.

The six year Syrian proxy war to dethrone president Bashar al Assad quietly ended with a whimper yesterday when at a news conference in the Turkish capital, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson suggested the end of Bashar Assad’s presidency is no longer a prerequisite for a way out of the Syrian crisis, in a dramatic U-turn from Washington’s long-held policy.

Stocks fell worldwide on the last day of the quarter, with US equity futures pointing to a lower open even as the S&P is set for its best quarter since 2015 amid persistent economic and political uncertainty.

Submitted by Nick Colas of Convergex

Is Public Equity A Broken Concept

European Union Chief  Jean-Claude Juncker is apparently not thrilled with Trump's support of the Brexit referendum and, in speaking at the centre-right European People Party’s (EPP) annual conference today, has vowed to "promote the independence of Ohio and Austin, Texas in the United States of America" if he "goes on like that."